From Twitter

I’m going to be joining The Summit team for an overview of the top social media networks (including current trends affecting each), with the goal of helping you figure out which are the right ones for your business and how to use them best.

Will you be there, too?

Frustrated and overwhelmed about how to use and manage your social media efforts?

Interested in what’s new with Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and all of the rest?

Excited for an up-to-the minute conversation about using the right social media platforms (and time!) more effectively to market your business?

Join me for a fun and engaging conversation about the most popular social media networks and how to make them work for you and your business.

You would think the top phrases you would hear at a top social media marketing conference would be “fan growth,” “key posting times,” “traffic,” “conversion,” and “ROI” – right? Wrong!

I am refreshed and recharged to share from this year’s Social Media Marketing World 2015 (#SMMW15) the consistent calls for marketers to connect on real and authentic levels in order to build their communities. From keynote speeches and breakout sessions to table talks and networking, the focus in this age of information overload and short attention spans was “better not more” and “helping not selling.”

Take a look at these key buzzwords, sound bites and takeaways from the top experts in digital marketing to see what resonates most with your business:

HUMAN
Being relatable and relevant is key in getting the attention of your customers and building your community. Tell your story and get others involved in it.
· “Always Be You” – Ambassador Mike Bruny
· “It’s not the wand, it’s the wizard” – Tom Webster shared by Christopher Penn
· “Invest in human beings” – Pam Moore

EMPATHY
Address the needs of your community, customers and clients by creating content and using technology to care, share, serve and listen. Don’t simply create a marketing plan on autopilot.
· “Earn the right to sell” – Chris Brogan
· “Caring is scalable” – quote attributed to Gary Vaynerchuk by Mari Smith

SERVICE
In this age of instant gratification and bad reviews, go above and beyond in serving your fans and your haters. Wow them!
· “Service is the new social” – Mari Smith
· #HugYourHaters – Jay Baer

ENGAGE
Create moments, movements and communities in which people want to belong and participate.
· “People don’t buy, they join” – Pam Moore
· “If content is king, then engagement is the queen” – Mari Smith

Upon review, you realize you can’t really embrace any one of these concepts without touching on several of the others. If you are being of service, you are engaging and showing empathy. In embracing all of the above, you are more than likely being very human in connecting to your community.

Whether you are in product sales or creating a brand for your service business, keeping these very essential concepts top of mind as you create your marketing strategy is vital for being found, being seen and being heard and more easily connecting with your ideal community.

For more takeaways, tweets and tips from #SMMW15, check out these all-star posts:

Please share in the comments, how you are being more human, engaging, empathetic, service-oriented and entertaining with your online marketing. And also sign up for my newsletter to receive more articles like this one directly in your inbox every month. Thanks!

Last Friday, I attended another amazing Women Entreprenuers’ Network meeting at Serendipity Labs in Westchester to learn about the state of “Social Media Today.” Our guest speaker was Chris Dessi, CEO of Silverback Social, who was inspiring and instructional. He kept us on the edge of our seats discussing the life changing trajectory that social media has played in our lives and our businesses over the past several years.

From an inspirational standpoint he challenged our group to create and share “spine-tingling” interactions and charged us all to have a “reverence for the platform”! Wow! No small challenge, but I am going to try and carry that charge forward with me as I think about how and what I am posting and sharing across social media.

From a practical standpoint, here are Chris’s top tips for strategic timing with your social media posts:

For Facebook– think “coffee and cocktails” as the best time for posting.

For Twitter – think reading the paper and looking at the news, during the day.

For more information on Chris and his company, you might want to consider attending his Westchester Digital Summit held next May. I think you’ll see me there!

Have you been to a fantastic networking event lately? What valuable advice did you receive?